My Way

You know what in personal finance blogs we tend to be a little over judgmental. We seemed to forget most PF bloggers are realistically freaks or oddities of nature. No one in the right mind is going to save 30% of their take home pay year in and year out for 20 years without a few screws missing. In my personal case, I know this. I value my future free time A LOT more than most other things. That’s not to say I don’t make some completely irrational spending decisions at times and spend money now, but mostly I’m saving for future spending.

So it was rather refreshing for me to read this post at a blog called Fabulously Broke. Basically the blogger points out after spending $550 on clothes while still paying off debt: it’s my life, my decision and I’m ok with it. To that I raise a glass in a toast: to your Way.

That in the point of all this is to find your Way. My Way won’t be your Way. That’s ok and actually in my case I would prefer you find your Way over mine. You see my Way works for my family and it tuned to the way I like things. I certain don’t expect you to love reading, have an compulsion to write and be so completed addicted to coffee that if you took it away from me I might cry. It works for me and I’m ok with it.

So when you hear someone who spends an insane amount of money on things, try not to judge if they pay cash. After all it is their money and people have different values. As long as you are not using credit to pay for your life I really can’t complain about you taking a trip, buying a car, or picking up a bottle of wine on the way home from work. It’s about having choice and being aware of the choice. I dislike automatic spending on things you didn’t even want, but if you know you really want it go ahead.

We only live life once. Find what works for you and don’t feel guilty about after reading these blogs. PF bloggers are not the average, so don’t compare yourself unless you feel it is valid to your life. So how about you, what do you spend money on that you never complain about or regret?

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8 thoughts on “My Way”

Travel. My husband and I are pretty frugal but travel is the one item we spend a lot of money on (I estimate we spend 12% of our gross pay on it per year). Also, when we travel, although we always hunt for deals, we do stay in nice hotels, eat at nice restaurants, etc. The good thing is when push comes to shove, it’s an easy discretionary expense to cut out of our budget, but for now, while we are kid free and both making good money, (and not buying it on credit!) we choose to travel. We also know that when the future kid comes along travel will not be part of the plan for a while so we plan to enjoy it now!

So what’s it say about me when I saved over 60% of my take-home last year?

Of course, percentages become useless when talking personal finance if income isn’t know. Someone earning six figures can spend as much as someone earning 50k and still have plenty left over for savings and be happy.

You know what I find odd, yet common. That people I work with that easily make twice what I do always seem so broke and debt ridden. I make substantially less and seem to always have the money I need to enjoy my life and still save. It’s an odd paradox I find.

Video Games. I dropped almost a thousand bucks on an Xbox and games last year. However, I carefully consider each of my game purchases with regards to the number of hours I’ll spend playing them (too many hours, I admit). I believe I get my money’s worth. I try to buy most games used since I’m not the type that needs to be playing the newest title on the shelf.

On top of that, I borrow/trade games with friends. So the variety is good enough to keep me entertained. Also, I don’t plan on buying a new game console every year.

Well if you saved 60%, I would say you either make a lot or your very determined or you are crazier than I am. Without knowing the details I can’t say which. 🙂

Adam,

Actually it isn’t a paradox. Money to a point does buy happiness when you are just starting out. $0 < $5000/yr < $20,000/yr...until you reach that level of enough. After that it just all goes downhill for the most part. The money can create more problems and cause all sorts of issues. The level of 'enough' varies by the person, but it is easy to pass without knowing it.
Tim

Disclaimer

I am not god. I am a mere mortal as such my reality is defined by my own views. So your reality might not resemble mine because of your views. As such all opinions, ideas and investments on this blog might not work for you as they did for me. Be a big person and do your own research and make up your own mind before trying something. The opinions expressed are my own. You might need to contact a local professional for advice.